4 - 6 July - Anchorage

Pam and Dave called and said they were coming into Anchorage, so we sponsored them on the base and got them a spot here. They really enjoyed the Kenai Peninsula and they’ve made us eager to be done here and move down into the Kenai ourselves. Pam got to experience a base commissary (translation: big grocery store) and we had a traditional 4th of July dinner of chicken, potato salad and cherry turnovers for dessert. Then we drove around and checked out the flightline over at Elmendorf. We saw a funny sign on the flightline, so I grabbed a quick picture, even though taking pictures on the flightline is greatly frowned upon. I'm sure those birds take this order very seriously.

Sunday morning started with quite a surprise. I took Gypsy out for her morning constitutional. We are camped next to a stretch of woods with little paths, and beyond the woods is a dirt road, so we go out to the other side of the road for her to perform the morning necessaries. We had slept in though, so she was very anxious to be about her business, and squatted just as we got out of the woods. I was watching where I stepped because of stumps and sticks and other tripping dangers, so I didn’t even look up and around until I was out of the trees. I stood there,
stretching and yawning, and glanced to the left where there stood two horses about 30’ away. No. Wait. MOOSE!!! Two moose!!! Looking at us with what can only be described as amazement. I looked at them. They looked at us. I whispered, “come on, Gypsy” and tugged on the leash. She gave me a look that said, “I’m not done yet” and she did a little half turn, whereupon she saw the moose and quick as a flash she was indeed done and standing behind me with eyes like saucers. Very, very quietly we stepped back into the woods and hustled ourselves back to Cleo, where Gypsy proceeded to jump on the dash and bark ferociously out the window, just in case those moose wanted to intrude on her space.

Later we went back to the market, then to Earthquake Park, where the devastation of the 1964 earthquake is displayed. Then we watched the float planes at Spinard Lake, a large float-plane “airfield.” Tomorrow the mail we’re waiting for should arrive and the trip will resume on Tuesday.